In Memoriam
by Maidenstear
Summary: Yugi Muto changed after he graduated high school.


Aneko: Dang, I've been writing a whole slew of YGO fics lately. It's like they've all built up over the years without my realizing it, and now they're all appearing at once. Kind of like how rabbits breed…

This takes place after the end of the anime and beyond.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!

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><p><strong>In Memoriam<strong>

Yugi Muto changed around the time he graduated from high school. No one could quite explain how. He was still the number one duelist in the world and a shortie with ridiculously pointy hair, but he had changed. His fans, who had followed him since he was crowned King at Duelist Kingdom, tried their best to figure out what it was exactly, but they couldn't put their finger on it no matter what they did.

Those close enough to him, those he had known since his freshman year in high school, knew precisely where the change had come from. They could even name the exact day, because they had all been there as well to witness it. For the life of them, though, they would never tell a single soul about the events of that day. Especially the President of Kaiba Corporation (though they could never really tell if he _actually_ believed it, anyways). It was something taboo, a treasure that only they could know about. Besides, it was likely that no one would believe them anyways. It was a story about magic and destiny, spirits and prophecies, and a man who could change the world.

But people didn't really believe in magic anymore, and truth be told, they really wanted to keep it a secret amongst themselves. It was only when they were together, just their small group and no one else (Kaiba couldn't be bothered to show up), that they could laugh and talk freely, making off-hand comments about that time in their lives that had been so completely out of the ordinary.

Yugi was there too, reminiscing right along with them.

He still had those large, innocent eyes. Eyes that seemed to take everything in with childish wonder. But nowadays, they also held a glimmer of something more, some deeper wisdom bestowed upon him by a very good friend.

And so people continued to wonder just what it was that made Yugi Muto the person he was.

On the news, experts would talk about the young man whose name was as well known as Seto Kaiba's. If Yugi knew how popular he was, though, he made no mention of it. Being known the world over wasn't something that really concerned him. There were things that were more important. Sometimes when he was interviewed after a tournament, they would ask him what his next goal would be, or if he had any plans to enter a new tournament. Most he would just shrug and smile, saying, "Not really. I have everything I need, and I'm happy where I am." The last shot from the interview was always, unfailingly, of him running towards a small group of people who waited for him in the background, smiling and giving him thumbs up.

He was very different in person than when he was dueling, of that everyone agreed. Those who saw him duel were surprised to find out how gentle and kind he was in person. It was hard to imagine anyone disliking a soul as benign as this young man's. If his name wasn't known the way it was, it would be easy to simply pass him by on a crowded street, or to not notice him in a room full of people. He didn't stand out the way people like Kaiba and Maximillion Pegasus did. He was just a normal, average boy.

On the dueling platform, though, he almost transformed, the change was so drastic. There, his eyes would get a certain spark in them, and a smile would come to his face. Just at a glance it was obvious how at home he was in the midst of a tournament, or even just a friendly duel. His voice became confident and charismatic as he faced his opponent. Those watching couldn't help but be caught up, their emotions rising and falling with every gain or loss he suffered. His very presence drew people in, and made them curious. And he always looked like he was having the time of his life.

People still said that he was "different," but only eyewitnesses could attest to it, because mysteriously, all videos from Yugi's previous duels had vanished. All videos from Kaiba Corp events and records from Duelist Kingdom had disappeared, inaccessible to even the most prying eyes.

A rumor leaked from somewhere said that Kaiba Corp had taken them and deleted them all or hidden them behind the strictest levels of security. But, since it was Kaiba Corp, and not even a fly could get through a crack in the wall, the rumors remained unfounded.

They were, of course, only partially true, anyway. Kaiba Corp's president had personally overseen the removal of all records pertaining to the first four years of Yugi Muto's dueling career. The young business owner did not, however, keep or delete them. They were, he had said, only useless junk that would clog up his databases. So instead, he put them all in the hands of a single person.

I don't like owing people, he had said, before driving off in his expensive car. Yugi couldn't help but laugh silently at the words, because despite the excuse, what Kaiba had handed him was another kind of treasure. It was just a simple disc, perhaps, not something thieves and buyers would consider a treasure. But it held on it memories of a dear friend, and to him it was better than silver or gold.

On this disk was the key to understanding the change in Yugi. Unlike the Yugi who dueled at the present, the Yugi in the videos dueled in an altogether different manner. _That_ Yugi dueled with a smirk of victory always on his lips, and a fierceness that would send dishonest men running in terror. His gaze could see through to the soul, judging it for better or for worse. Straight-backed and confident, pride emanated off of him in waves so much so that he could have been a king of old. In a way, that Yugi could almost have been a completely different person.

But that was a silly idea. Things like that didn't happen, right? Of course not. So everyone was left to their own thoughts, unknowing of this past that was such a secret.

It was on rainy days when Yugi would usually get that familiar ache in his chest, a lonely, but not entirely unwelcome feeling. Those were the days when he would pick up the disk to watch, a fond smile coming to him when he saw the face on the TV screen. He never cried—the tears had dried up after that day, just like they were supposed to—but there was a bittersweet melancholy that was hard to let go of.

They lived their lives proudly and with much happiness. It wasn't that they had "moved on"—a part of their hearts would always stay on that day, in that room that whispered of the ancient—but that they knew that life shouldn't be stopped for that one thing. And_ he_ would have wanted them to keep going.

It was hard, thinking that he was gone. He was definitely dead—he had been nothing but a spirit for the past five thousand years—but there was no tombstone or marker to prove it. And besides, a part of him would remain, in their hearts and their minds, forever. So it was easier to just think that he really wasn't dead at all.

They all went on to do great things. Tea became a world-famous dancer. Tristan became the head of security at Industrial Illusions (though no one was _quite_ sure how he managed it). Joey was the third best duelist in the world as well as an employee at the Turtle Game Shop.

But the one who everyone knew and, more importantly, loved, was Yugi Muto. He was, he said modestly, just the owner of a small game shop and a man who loved games. They all knew better. Anyone who saw this legend set foot on a dueling platform could see why he held the title King of Games and always would.

And they could never be certain, but sometimes, as he dueled, it seemed as though there was another presence beside him. Not dueling _for_ him, exactly, but giving him strength. A presence that watched over and protected him with all the wisdom of a great king.

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><p>Aneko: I feel like my brain leaked all over the paper rather than this being an actual story. Seriously. My thoughts were <em>not<em> connected when I was trying to write. Ah, well, so be it. And just to let you know, whether you care or not, Tristan and Joey's futures were very hard to figure. I had no clue what I was going to do with them, so I kind of…stuck them in random places. Yes, I know they're strange. Sorry about that.

It's official—when I think of Yu-Gi-Oh! I hear Little Kuriboh's voice instead of the other voice actors. Oh the wonders of the Abridged series…


End file.
